21 things I learned before 21

So, I’ve just turned 21 and life couldn’t be better to be honest, I feel like I have achieved a lot in the past 21 years so I thought I would share just a quick rundown of some of my findings and musings along the way! Hopefully you will get to know me a little better and comment down below if any of the points resonate with you!

1. Surprisingly, paying a gym membership every month doesn’t buy you the perfect body. 😒 I know, I was shocked too.

2. That I was going to be called Imogen?! 🙃 I’m just going to leave this one here because I don’t really know what my parents were thinking. *disclaimer: this is by no means to offend anyone with that name but come on just look at me. I’m no Imogen.

3. Don’t let anyone rush you. Whether that be parents, toxic friendships, social media… whatever the case may be take your time. Rome wasn’t built in a day, it was built off the back of consistency.

4. Budgeting. 😴 Remember, it’s always easier to save than have to work even more hours to afford the extras. Live within your means!

5. You can’t get new old friends. 👯 This is something I’m becoming to realise. Making new friends is all well and good but those long-time primary school friends can never be replaced. This ‘cutting-out culture’ is damaging but by no means keep people in your life who have a negative effect on you.

6. The harsh reality that this is the most freedom you’ll ever have. 😶 Scary, I know. But as a female, let’s face it, in the next ten years we’re all going to be married with kids and trying to hold down successful careers (lets hope), so I feel like I really need to enjoy this freedom whilst it lasts… the reason I am currently on a study abroad living life!

7. ‘Your average mark is 67’. 😄 Hands up if anyone else is part of the 67 club at university? If it were a society, I’d pretty much be the president.

8. Every hard time you’ve been through growing up will all start to show. 🙇🏽‍♀️ I feel like you get to that age where you start to see the effects your past has had on you, your strengths, your weaknesses, your mentality and your personality.

9. Not everyone will understand you or even like you but that’s okay. 🤦🏽‍♀️ Just stop being a people pleaser. Just stop.

10. How to (nearly) forgive… nearly. 🤷🏽‍♀️ Naturally, being a person that trusts in people, when that trust and loyalty is abused I feel a certain type of way that leaves me with a strong grudge. Learning to forgive is honestly one of my biggest lessons, I would advise anyone to do if not only for your own happiness and mental health.

11. Who to trust with your eyebrows. 🙅🏽 Like just wow I am never ever going to Superdrug again, ever.

12. Sacrifice and the patience to see it through. 🔑 This is key. You have to give up to get.

13. I am a painfully, painfully independent person and an introvert at heart. 💆🏽 I’ve always loved just being in my own company and I used to think this was a good thing and in a lot of ways it actually is but sometimes I need to remember to actually spend quality time with the people I love!

14. People WILL judge you on your appearance and you alone can’t fight that. ☹️ When I stopped caring so much about my appearance it was actually crazy how much people treated me differently. I realised how superficial society was as a whole and I tried to rebel against this, doing even less about my appearance as a result of not wanting to succumb to the pressure of always trying to look good. But then I realised, it’s human nature, people will always judge you on your appearance. This thought used to suck the fun out of taking time on my appearance for me but now I embrace it. If people are going to judge me on the way I look before they get to know my amazing personality (lol) then I’m going to give them something worth looking at. *cringe*

15. You control your own life. 💪🏽 Stop making excuses, you can live the lifestyle you want, you just have to take actions accordingly. The law of attraction- look it up!

16. You need to check yourself (but don’t wreck yourself). 👀 I believe everyone needs to ‘check themselves’ once in a while. No one is perfect but we can all strive to be a positive influence on the lives of others around us and hey ho you might actually learn something about yourself.

17. Don’t let people drag you down. 🌝Unfortunately this one couldn’t be truer. Being a natural agony-ant I always attract friends that are purely energy-takers. They’re not supportive. They do not want the best for you and instead are only going to get in the way of your dreams. Identify and delete.

18. Listen to your mum. 🐻 (I didn’t want to have to admit this one). Love you mum.

19. It’s the people that make the place. 👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 I have absolutely loved being in Australia for the past six months but one of the things I have noticed is that it really is the people that make you happy not where you are in the world or where you are with anything else in your life, I mean the sun does help I can’t lie but having your people around you is so important!

20. Not to state the complete obvious but… about myself. 🌻 What I like, what I don’t like. What I will stand for and what I won’t. Who I want around me and who I do not. Basically my moral compass.

& finally number 21. You are blessed. 🙏🏽 I truly am. Blessed to have such amazing family and friends. Blessed to be educated. Blessed to be happy. Blessed in every way possible and so are you.

There it is. 21 lessons I’ve learned before my 21st birthday! Share and comment if you could relate to any of these revelations and let me know what you’ve learned before your current age!

Disclaimer: This is not to say I have only learned 21 things in the past 21 years…